What We Had
by TheLocalAquatic
Summary: (ENDLESS SUMMER) You're in love with Diego, but a lot can happen in La Huerta. Could it survive with everything you both end up going through on the island? MC is (obviously) male. Rated for sexual content and use of bad language.


"Get your ass in a seat, ya hear? And tell everybody to buckle up!" the pilot, Jake, yells at you as you hold on to the co-pilot's seat with as much strength as you can muster.

You and ten other students had won an all-expenses-paid trip to the island of La Huerta, and what should have been a straight-forward flight was slowly seeming to be a disastrous catastrophe. At first, it seemed as if the pilot was just taking his sweet-ass time getting you all there, but now it was so much more than that, as Mother Nature seems to intensely despise the idea of you all going to the island.

You curse to yourself quietly upon silently asking yourself why the hell you got up to see the pilot in the first place, as you precariously walk back to your seat next to Diego, your best friend. You're grabbing everything you can possibly get a grip on as the plane violently trembles in the air, Jake tirelessly guiding it safely through the storm. It takes a while, but soon you're facing your classmates and the tour guide, all looking back at you with cautious stares. You concentrate your line of sight on the seat next to Diego, and with as much momentum you can muster you start grabbing as many seats as possible to make your way there.

It proves to be an effective strategy, as you're only inches away from your seat. The sound of belts buckling simultaneously is barely heard over the thunder, but you pay little attention to that. You focus your attention on Diego, whose eyes are staring right back at yours bloodshot. He appears almost still, as if he cannot react or even possibly breathe, and it drives you all the more to get into the seat next to him.

You feel your fingers slipping on the seats you're holding for support as the plane begins to move more vigorously, and you feel puke building up in the back of your throat. Diego's arms latch themselves to the arms of the seat, as if on instinct; his gaze remains firmly on you, and you feel like you can practically hear the pleas in his eyes, hoping you sit down.

THUD!

All of a sudden, the plane jerks unexpectedly, and feel you grip fading away as the impact takes its toll on you. But then, just a second later, you feel a firm grip in your hand.

"TAYLOR!"

Diego's expression is now full of worry and discomfort as he tries to keep a hold of you, and you can feel yourself pulling him out of his seat slightly. He's pulling on your arm, trying with all his might to pull you in as the plane continues to shake violently. He looks at you with tearful eyes, and you feel yourself tearing up at the sight. You yourself try to adjust your weight so that Diego has less weight to act against.

"Come on, Diego!" you exclaim to him; not with a voice of urgency – although, yes, this was a matter of life-or-death - but with a voice of patience. You know he will try his hardest to save you from potential death.

"I'll try!" Diego yells back at you, his voice trembling.

He emits a few groans as he gets a firmer grip on your hand and blankets it with his other hand. He pulls harder, and he's making some progress as you can now reach the seat with your own hand. You're quick to swerve around and sit yourself down, Diego keeping his hands on your shoulders every step of the way, and you feel your lips curving slightly upwards at the contact. You smile to yourself again, this time in relief as you hear the satisfying click of your seatbelt, feeling accomplished.

Diego's hand remains on your shoulder, and you reach up for it on instinct, holding it tightly. You turn to face him, and neither of you break away from the contact. For a moment, it feels as if there's nothing else going on around the two of you, that nobody else is present on the scene; it's just you and Diego, holding on to each other.

"Taylor…" Diego starts, "Please…tell me we'll make it…"

"Diego…" you respond, placing your other hand on his lap as you maintain eye contact, "I promise you, we'll make it…"

You feel your face inching closer to his, and Diego does nothing as he concentrates on you. Soon you notice that your nose is just mere millimeters away from Diego's, and you can feel his breath against your skin.

Then, everything around you feels as if it's fading away. You feel yourself practically melting in Diego's gaze, in Diego's scent, and he looks back at you with an expression of hope, his mind clearly still on the life-or-death situation at hand, but a part of you eagerly anticipates that he's hoping that you'll-

"Wooooooohoooo, we're alive!" comes a cheer from a guy behind the two of you.

Diego pulls away from you and whips himself around to look out of the window. You peer over his body to see the stormy clouds no more, clear skies dominating your view as far as you can see. Your best friend turns around and you can see his eyes screaming with joy. He wraps himself around you as he hopelessly babbles in happiness and relief.

"We're alive, Taylor! We're alive!" he pulls himself off you, his arms still at your shoulders, revealing tears of joy accumulating in the corners of his eyes. He then buries himself in your chest as he mumbles through the fabric of your shirt, "Oh, we're…we're alive…!"

"Welcome to La Huerta!" Lila, the tour guide, cheerily exclaims as the plane lands.

Once it does, everyone proceeds to get up, and Diego is enthusiastically waiting for you to move so he can finally get out of the plane. He silently thanks you as he gathers his carry-on luggage from above your heads and makes his way merrily of the plane.

You sigh to yourself; you almost did it. You were so close.

Who'd have thought this vacation would turn into an absolute hellhole?

You're with Iris, Lila, Michelle, Craig, Zahra, Raj and Grace in the restaurant as they all wonder what to do with what has turned out to be everyone's last day on Earth. You've already talked to all except Grace to see what they're going to do, and for the most part you're quite confident that they're able to handle themselves.

You sit down in an empty, undisturbed corner as you bury your face in your hands, Diego being the only thing on your mind. So much has happened since you got here; so much laughter and pain all at once within the past couple days or so. You remember how he had voted to stay put in the Celestial while you had voted to leave immediately, and you felt a pang of guilt for not wanting to stay with him at the Celestial. But, you wanted out of this island crap, and yet, no matter how hard you looked with Sean – the only other student here who's actually had your back the whole time – there was just no way around it.

You gaze outside the window, taking in as much of the island as you can before it's all gone. You also realize how exposed the hotel is to those 'Watcher' things as you didn't put the place on lockdown, which had been Diego's choice. But, either way you figured these human-esque creatures would find their way into the Celestial anyway, so was there really any point to isolating yourselves to the inside of the hotel?

A part of you jumps as you feel someone touch your shoulder, and immediately you hope it's Diego. Right now, you'd like nothing more than to be with him...wherever he is. You assume he'd went off with Estela, Quinn, Sean and Jake to wherever they went to cope with the current situation.

"Taylor?"

You feel a little disappointed when the voice, in fact, belongs to Grace, who steps forward and sits in the empty chair beside you. No-one else comes near the two of you, but nonetheless the orange-clad young woman speaks in a soft whisper.

"Hey, Grace." you greet her, composing yourself. "What's up?"

Grace rubs her knuckles together and says nothing.

"…do you…want a drink or something?" you ask. "Because Zahra and Raj are…"

Grace shakes her head. "N-no, I'm good…I don't feel like drinking."

You then realize what she's come to talk to you about. You sigh softly. Not out of disappointment, but out of understanding.

"…is this about Aleister?"

Only a short while ago, you had discovered that Aleister was hiding quite a major part of his identity from everyone: that he was the son of Everett Rourke, the man who owns the Celestial, as well as many other projects and sights you'd come across on the entire island. You and Diego knew that he was the eleventh winner – the one that shouldn't have been on the trip, but even with his reasons for coming here, apparently to get back at his father for being ignorant for all these years, none of you were buying it while Grace could only listen on in shock, slapping him once she came to her sense and left him alone on the rooftop garden.

Grace nods. "This might sound a bit…out there…and I'm not the most…socially skilled person in the world, but for a moment there, I felt like he was opening up to me; letting his cold and bitter shell deteriorate when we conversed. Sure, I get why he lied, and…"

She goes on for a while, and admittedly you're not listening for the most part. You've been aware of Grace's feelings for Aleister for quite some time now, and every time you've seen them get all chummy with one another, you've pictured yourself and Diego in that exact situation. Admittedly, you feel as if you haven't talked to Diego much throughout the trip, even though he's supposed to be your best friend and all. Perhaps you should probably talk to him...spend some time with him; after all, there's not much of that left.

And you know what? Maybe Grace should also be applying this technique when it comes to her own relationship with Aleister. You know that sounds very dismissive in your head, but you just really want to get to Diego, as does Grace with Aleister.

"Grace…" you interject while she is mid-sentence. You take her hands and hold them so that she stops twiddling her thumbs nervously, and it calms her down slightly. "Why don't you just…tell him how you feel?"

"R-really?" she stammers, and you nod.

"Yeah. I mean, look, we're stranded on an island with blue-skinned alien things out for our blood. If there's a good time to tell someone how you feel about them, it's now."

Grace smiles, and she looks at you gratefully. "Yeah, I see. You're right. I should." She gets up from her seat and makes her way out of the restaurant, but not before uttering a final thank you complete with a friendly embrace.

You chuckle to yourself, feeling proud of how you managed to spark some confidence within Grace. And now, it's probably time to try a similar tactic with Diego.

You find the others in the lobby. Sean, Jake, and Estela seem to be examining as many documents as they'd found from scouring the hotel as if to try finding a last-minute plan B to escape the Watchers and leave the island. Quinn and Diego, meanwhile, are seated on a couch near the wall, engaged in conversation. Once you enter the room, Diego looks up at you and smiles at Quinn as he excuses himself, walking over towards you.

"Taylor! Hey dude!" Diego greets enthusiastically, and you can't help but giggle at his optimistic greeting despite everything going on.

"How're you holding up, Diego?" you ask him.

"Oh, well, y'know…ups and down, peaks and valleys. Found some chips in the kitchen, about to be brutally murdered by some Lord Of The Rings rejects…"

Oh, Diego… you hear yourself sigh, lost in his eyes once again, even though he's not reciprocating.

"Hey." he suddenly snaps you out of your own trance, and you look at him intently.

"Yeah?" you ask.

"You think it'd be inappropriate to watch Lord Of The Rings right now?"

"You…wanna watch a movie? But…it's your last night!"

Diego looks at you funny, and you feel bad. The way you worded that could have been said better. Either way, you shake your head and chuckle.

"Sorry." You apologize, feeling like you must. "But still, why a movie?"

"Wow. You're my best friend, dude! You know I love to chill out and have a good movie playing to calm me down! Too bad I don't have a boyfriend and there's no Netflix in this place; I could've gone out with a bang, huh."

"Quite a literal bang, eh?" you snicker quietly as you lean closer towards him, making sure the other four don't pick up on the innuendo, especially Jake, cuz God knows what kind of remark he'd have for that.

"While we're on the subject…" Diego's voice is hush now, as he leans into your ear. "Are you gonna…you know…?"

You're blushing furiously and resist the urge to giggle sheepishly. No words can coherently escape your lips as you turn to him in attempts to speak up. "Do you…do you-do you mean…am I gonna…?"

"Do I seriously need to spell it out?" Diego chuckles. "Make a move!"

He gestures over to Sean and Jake, the two no longer joined by Estela (who knows where that girl went half the time) and yet still seemingly adamant on finding a way out on the hotel's blueprints. They don't notice the gesture, nor does anyone notice you sigh in discontentment. "I've seen the way you've been acting around 'em," he whispers, "Flirting…teasing…I think I've even seen you take your shirt off a couple times!"

"Diego, I-" you're wondering how on earth Diego knows about that, but in a way, you feel somewhat flattered that he can point out that he's seen you shirtless, and it sends you into another blushing frenzy.

"No objections!" Diego waves off your poor attempts to rebut and makes his way out, but not before uttering quietly, "Go get yourself some steamy R-rated action!"

"Where are you going?" you hiss back at him.

"To find wherever Rourke keeps his movies! And then bring a few back to my Under The Sea suite! Hey, maybe they'll have The Little Mermaid lying around! Anyways, have fun with whatever choice you make!"

"Diego…!" you utter, but he's long gone. You turn yourself round to see Sean and Jake staring at you quizzically, and you chuckle sheepishly in response.

"What was that about?" Sean asks.

"I'll tell ya what that was, Q.B.…" Jake interjects, "Boy Scout and Pop Culture Petey are acting like an old married couple."

"Really?" you roll your eyes. Not just at the assumption, but also at the excessive nicknames.

"Sure," The pilot nods, "The two of ya have been at it all the time since we got here. I say you both just get a room and-"

"Jake!" Sean exclaims. "Jesus Christ…"

Jake shrugs, "Whatever. I'm gonna go to bed and enjoy whatever I can of this damn 'last night on Earth' shizz."

You say goodnight to Jake and watch him leave the lobby, and you and Sean are apparently the only two left; Quinn must've left some time ago.

"So…Taylor…" Sean rubs the back of his neck as he gets your attention. "Since it's the last night and all, do you wanna spend it together?"

You take a good look at Sean. And that proves to be a hard task, initially, since he's 6'5". He's as tall as he is good looking and having seen him shirtless on multiple occasions, you're aware of how ripped he is. Literally, Sean is the textbook definition of a perfect hunk. Or more appropriately, the perfect football player.

But there is one flaw.

He's not Diego.

"Sorry, Sean, I think I might have to pass." You don't want to tell him why that is, of course, but you feel bad for not giving a reason. Sean doesn't seem too concerned as to why you don't want to spend the night with him, however, giving you a warm chuckle as a response and a hand on your shoulder.

"It's okay. I think I might go over to Jake's room and see if he wants some company." The quarterback replies. You keep mum as to why you think he said Jake in particular; you can't argue that while Diego may think one or both are into you, you yourself have been witness to a whole other dynamic being played out.

Sean doesn't say goodbye - perhaps because contextually it'd come off worse than he would intend it to - and evacuates the lobby. You follow suit, knowing where you want to go.

The Under The Sea Suite.

Here it goes…

You breathe in…and breathe out. You find it hard to maintain a steady breathing pace, as your heart feels as if it's on fire, and you feel yourself sweating through your shirt. Hopefully, it doesn't show.

Approaching the door – Diego's door - has you all tongue-tied. After all, what on earth do you say to a guy you have a crush on when you want to make a move on him? There is a light humming on the other side of the door, probably from a movie playing on the TV. There is the occasional chewing sound every now and then; Diego must've found some popcorn.

Now's as good a time as any. You swallow your voice of doubt down your throat and knock lightly on the door three times; your fist is weak with each knock, and you knock a few more times, a little louder, just to ensure he's heard you.

The door opens, and Diego stands before you. He stares back at you in mild surprise, but not at all horrendously shocked. He's wearing a pale purple nightgown loosely tied around his waist, leaving part of his chest exposed. You let your eyes trail down and stare at it, and you feel yourself blushing again.

"Taylor?"

"Diego, hi!" you know you're stammering. You let a smile form freely on your face to hide your nerves.

"Dude, what're you doing here?"

"I choose you!" the Pokémon reference seems to slip out smoother than you had anticipated, and you feel a weight being lifted off your shoulders when you realize how comfortable you were saying it.

"Choose me…for what…?" Diego's looking at you quizzically.

"I wanna spend tonight with you, Diego!"

Your best friend stands there, perhaps a little shocked, but scoots a little to the side as if to indicate that you were welcome to come in. You swiftly enter the room to keep him from seeing your reddening cheeks because it dawns on you that you sounded ridiculous just then. The dimly lit room is charming and serene, the walls and floor alike awash with numerous shades of blue and fish decorations and furniture dominate much of the room. The TV blares at the bed before it, and it turns out that Diego did end up finding a copy of The Little Mermaid, as you see it paused on a scene during the Under The Sea musical number. You sit at the edge of Diego's bed, keeping your hands together but trying to look at chilled and suave as possible while Diego shuts the door and makes his way to the other side of the bed.

It takes everything within your power to not overreact or look flushed as Diego removes his nightgown to reveal a pair of purple boxer shorts…and that's literally all he's wearing. He picks up his popcorn and reclaims his spot on the bed. He then casts his gaze over to you, looking at you expectantly.

"Come on, dude." He begins, making a gesture. "Get in and watch the movie with me. Have you seen The Little Mermaid before? It's awesome!"

"Can't say I have in a while, no…" while you can form a coherent answer, you're still staring at Diego, flustered at how easy-going he seems when approaching the idea of the two of you in the same bed.

Diego chuckles. "Then, Taylor, take your clothes off, get under these covers and re-live one of Disney's most adored classics with me!"

He looks away as you begin to undress yourself, but you still feel awkward all the same. You're left in your red boxers as you get under the covers, which are a lot warmer than they appear to be. Diego leans over you to get the bowl of popcorn sitting on your bedside table, and it is then when you realize that you're where Diego must've been before you came in. It feels nice to be laying here, you think to yourself.

Diego presses play on the remote, and you and him sit there in silence as the two of you witness Ariel's journey to become a human in order to attract Prince Eric to fall in love with her, as well as her perilous deal with Ursula. As you're watching the film, you cast a few, brief glances over in Diego's direction; he doesn't seem to notice you, though, as his attention's focused on the movie playing before the two of you, and yet you find yourself wishing that he'd just notice once, that you were looking at him as if to say you would to anything for him. And that, much like Ariel, you want to spend eternity with him for he is your prince charming. Sure, you wouldn't have long on Earth at this point because of all the shit going down, but…every second counts, surely?

"Wasn't that something, Taylor?" Diego speaks up at last, after turning the TV off upon the credits beginning to roll. "That is just a masterpiece. And it felt oh, so real when watching it in here."

Admittedly, you can't see much of the room anymore, now that the dominate source of light was now gone. All that was left were the dimmed lights of the lamps at the desk, emitting a reddish, romantic hue into the room. You turn to face Diego, and you can just about make out his figure.

You say nothing back. The two of you allow silence to accompany the darkness for a while, and everything feels calm, in spite of everything that's actually happening.

"Thanks for being here with me, Taylor." Diego says. "I…I really appreciate it. I know I'm not as cool as Jake or Sean or even Craig, but…I'm happy I get to spend my last night with you."

"Diego…" you begin, "Of course I'd spent my last night with you. I'd spent every night with you if I could – and, like, I mean, we did, but…what I'm trying to say is that if given the choice to, I would always pick you over anyone else, because…"

Here it comes. You gulp quietly, and fortunately, Diego says nothing about it. Then again, whether or not he heard is subject to question.

"…I love you, Diego. I love you more than anyone I've ever known, do know, and will ever get to know."

You hear a tiny, yet appreciative and wholesome laugh escape Diego's lips, as he says back, "I love you too, Taylor."

You want to cry. You want to cry, just a little bit, knowing that you have only just admitted your feelings towards Diego within the last hours of life. Knowing that soon, the two of you will be no more; that you will no longer be sitting beside each other. Or talking to each other. Or spending time with each other.

You're not particularly focused, but you must be crying, because Diego's consoling you, sitting even closer to you as he wraps an arm around your waist. You lean into the touch, and Diego leans into your head as well.

"I don't want to lose you, Diego…" you splutter in between sobs.

"And I don't want to lose you either, Taylor…" he says back, and you bring one of your arms around his neck.

"Diego, I…"

"Shh…tonight…we have each other…"

You find yourself at a loss for words once you find your mouth unable to move; Diego's lips are firmly pressed against yours, and the two of you sink towards the bed as you graze each other's lips lightly with kisses. His kisses are softer than yours, but that's because you can feel how needy yours are, as you know how long you've been wanting this to happen.

Diego is the first to pull away, as he lifts the quilt off of the two of you, exposing your legs. At first, you notice that you're getting hard from this, but then your gaze shifts to Diego's boxers, when it would seem that his cock has already started to ooze out some precum. It may be dark, but you can make out the faint blush on Diego's cheeks, and it's a refreshing sight to behold.

You want to get back to kissing Diego, but he beats you to the punch, collapsing on top of you, grinding his body – and ergo his cock – against yours. He shoves his tongue through your lips and you're loving every second of it, meeting it with your own as dance around your mouths. Diego also caresses your body with his hands, at first tugging playfully at your hair before lingering at your chest and caressing your nipples. You hiss in pleasure through the kiss in reaction, and you can hear him emit a small chuckle as well.

To retort, you pull on the top of his boxers before letting go, giving your friend a small wedgie while also getting a squeal out of him. It's so fucking hot and pleasurable that he sits up for a second before leaning back into you. You then tug at the boxers, pulling them down to reveal his hardened cock, but that's not what you're after. Feeling his bare ass in your fingertips, you grope his cheeks hungrily as you slowly bring your digits closer to his pucker.

You prod the edge of his hole with a few of your fingers, and this seems to elicit a pleasurable response out of Diego, who sits upright on your chest and manages to sit on your left hand. You smirk as you let Diego take a hold of your right hand as you continue teasing him with the fingers on your left hand. He continues to moan seductively as he brings your right hand to his face. At first, his only licks your index finger, but then he starts outright shoving all of your digits – thumb included – into his mouth, practically deep-throating them. You feel yourself squirming as precum begins leaking from your cock, as you feel the pleasure of Diego's tongue wrapping around each of the digits in his mouth, salivating them for both of you to enjoy.

All the while, you're using your left hand to offer Diego some stimulation, and soon enough, he's bouncing on your chest and screaming hungrily for something to make its way inside. He takes your fingers out of his mouth and turns himself around. He toys around with your boxers, before ferociously pushing them off of you to reveal your 9" cock in desperate need of attention.

He leans in, and as soon as you feel the majority of your cock enclosed within the warmth of Diego's mouth, you buck your hips, forcing Diego to take in more of your dick. Surprisingly, he manages to deep throat in stride, and begins bobbing at it slowly. As if to tease you even further, he adjusts himself on top of you, with his glorious ass now only mere inches away from your face.

Without thinking twice, you trail around Diego's hole with your right hand, your lubed-up fingers sliding in teasingly from time to time, eliciting small moans out of Diego which result in him bobbing harder on you cock. Then, you position one finger in line with Diego's asshole, and slowly but surely you insert it. Diego groans lightly, and makes an effort to push his ass in your direction as you stick in the rest of your digits, opening up his hole slowly but surely, so that it's ready for the main attraction.

"Fuck me, Taylor…" Diego moans. "God, just…just take me."

You need not say anything in response as he turns himself around, hovering over you now as you sit up so that he can align his hole with your cock. Once he's ready, he grasps your shoulders and lowers himself down, the tip of your penis already inside.

Diego huffs, as he tries his best to lower himself into as much of your cock as possible; you know already that Diego is a virgin…or rather, he was a virgin. Until tonight. Until he met you. And you could say the absolute same. Neither of you were going to die virgins, at least, which had been a fear of Diego's.

His virgin hole succeeds in allowing all of your cock enter, and Diego masks the urge to make a sound of brief discomfort by kissing you urgently, as if to plea for your comfort, to which you gladly reciprocate. He adjusts himself on your lap as he gets used to your cock inside him, and soon enough he's ready for you to fuck him hard.

At first, he moves slowly up and down, getting used to the girth of your cock in addition to its width. It's a smooth, rhythmic movement that also elicits a few purrs out of you.

"Ohhhh…god…." You exclaim under you breath, through your teeth. "Diego, you feel so…fucking…ooohhh…"

Your primal instincts begin to take over, and you roughly pull him away from your cock and proceed to get up from where you had been fucking him in your lap. Diego gives you a look that indicates that that was an unwanted withdrawal, but you're more than eager to make up for that as you grab both his wrists, lean into him, and let your cock protrude his asshole yet again. You fuck him harder, faster, and with passion; you take a hand and lower it to Diego's crotch, making a firm grab for his cock as you begin pumping it. This causes Diego to gasp heavily, but that doesn't stop him kissing you, or distract from you fucking him. This continues for a few minutes before the two of you find yourselves nearing your climaxes.

"Taylor…I'm gonna…" Diego breathes into your ear, and it makes you practically lose it. Before you even get the chance to pull out, your dick makes one final twitch inside Diego's ass before it unleashes a thick ooze of cum into the hole. The substance even trails out of Diego's pucker once you pull your cock out of him.

Diego comes not too long after; it takes a few more pumps, but what ends up really working a treat is your mouth on his cock. You swear, your lips had only touched the organ for but only a few seconds before he shot his load inside your mouth. It tastes divine, and it's thick too; you swallow as much of it as you can, without giving too much thought about the cum that ends up spilling out of your lips as excess.

Well, that was something.

You and Diego are laying under the covers now; the two of you are still panting after having had sex, and you while you don't say so out loud, you thought it was pretty fucking awesome. You cast a look over in Diego's direction, and a warm beam rests on his face, practically glowing in his own satisfaction, and you're grinning to yourself ear to ear, ecstatic – honoured, even – to be responsible for that, with what little time was left on La Huerta, and basically the planet Earth in general.

"Mmm…" you hum, rolling towards Diego slightly to spoon him. "I like this."

Diego murmurs in agreement. "I agree. No better way to say goodbye to the life we know than going out with a literal bang, huh?"

Then you ponder something. You think back to all the traps you've been setting around The Celestial, in hopes of keeping as many of those Watchers away from you all as possible. In the process, you've all managed to contain yourselves within the hotel walls, but…to what end?

No doubt that those creatures will eventually make their way into the building sooner or later, and you'll all be defenceless. Estela and Jake may know how to fight, and Sean and Craig could probably take down a bunch of them, but God knows how many of those things were on this island, ready to pile in and outnumber you effortlessly.

Perhaps…there should have been less emphasis on staying put, and more on escaping.

The Watchers know you're in the hotel, and that's what makes everyone all the more vulnerable to their attacks, but perhaps if you all came together and thought of a way out, around the traps you made, then maybe…just maybe there was a chance of surviving longer than just a few hours.

It was crazy…but you can safely say to yourself that you've seen more fucked up things on this island anyway so how would this even compare to all of that?

Then, faintly, you can make out a scream through the walls. It doesn't sound like it's in the room next door, but perhaps the next door down.

Both you and Diego shoot up and whip your heads in each other's direction, eyes widened. Neither of you utter a single word. You push away the covers of the bed and snatch up your clothes from the floor. You're probably wearing your shirt back to front, but that doesn't matter right now. Diego follows suit, and makes his way to your side of the bed, looking frenzied.

"Oh my god, Taylor, what's going on?"

"No idea." Your words slip out of your mouth with a hastened tremble. "We need to get out of here; not just this room, but this entire hotel. I don't think we're safe in The Celestial anymore."

"What?!" Diego exclaims, no doubt at the last thing you said. "Are you crazy? We're totally exposed! We'll die if we try leaving this place!"

Another scream is heard by the both of you, along with some shouting that most definitely belongs to Estela, ordering everyone to evacuate their rooms.

"Diego, we'll find a way to leave, I promise! But now we need to get the hell out of-!"

You're interrupted by the sound of shattered glass, and the two of you look over at the window to find a Watcher staring right back at you. Diego screams, but you don't. You recognize this one; this Watcher was the one you encountered on the beach.

"You…" you hear him say in your mind as his mouth speaks his indigenous mother tongue. Whatever that may be.

He inches forward and begins to raise his arms as if you make a grab for you, but Diego is quick to retort as he reaches for a lamp and hurls it at the Watcher, who winces in pain and falls to his knees in agony. You start seeing blood seeping out of a gash on his forehead.

"Taylor! Run!" Diego shouts. He tugs on your arm harshly, as you allow him to pull you out of the room with him before running independently as quickly as you could.

Finding the others had been a relatively simple task. It turned out that Craig was the one who screamed in the first place upon having a similar experience with a Watcher (although he seemed to drag his story out by hounding on about how he headbutted them back out the window…Michelle and Zahra both rolled their eyes at that one). Soon enough, all of you had managed to come together and now you all were retreating to the rooftop gardens. It had been decided upon that you all would use the parasailing gear Jake told you about to jump off the roof and make your way to safety, but unfortunately, there weren't enough parasails for everyone.

"We're running out of time of a miracle, guys!" Zahra huffs worriedly as she points to some Watchers peering round a corner. "They're almost here!"

"Indeed." IRIS concurs, although her lack of tone doesn't make you or anyone else feel any better. "You have approximately sixty seconds to escape."

"I don't wanna go out like this, Taylor…" Diego whimpers, looking as if he's about to cry. "I just wanna wake up when it's all over."

You wrap an arm around Diego and let him tear up over your shoulder, shielding him from the Watchers that are beginning to crowd you all. The one from the beach seems to take the lead, and he stares intently at you. It's unsettling how he seems to lack any strong emotion as he continues to look you and Diego over, and it makes you want to close the distance between you just to punch him square in the face.

"'Wake up when it's all over'…" you repeat to yourself. You find that part interesting, because…could it be that…?

Thinking quickly, you pull out of the hug with Diego and grabs the portal gun hanging from Jake's back pocket. This gun seems to send its targets…somewhere. It did seem to have that effect when Jake used it only recently in the ballroom on a few Watchers, so maybe…

"Are you insane, Boy Scout?" Jake asks. "There's way too many of these Avatar rejects to send through the portals!"

"Hold on." Sean says as he rests a hand on Jake's shoulder. "I don't think that it's meant for them…"

Jake whips his head around. "Then what-?"

You and Sean share a look, knowingly, before he looks back at Jake.

"…oh."

You point the gun at the ground below you all and shoot, effectively opening up a portal.

"Let's do this, guys!" Craig proclaims as he holds Zahra's hand and pulls her in. Sean and Jake proceed to follow suit and Grace brings Aleister over as well. The others also cling to each other, racing themselves as the portal begins to transport them to (hopefully) safety.

"Five seconds left." IRIS notifies you.

You and Diego are the last ones to step over the portal; you notice that everyone else is slowly engulfed by luminescent bubbles before they seemingly dissolve. The Watchers seem to be holding back, but before you and Diego get an opportunity to go through the portal, a few, including the one from the bedroom, begin to come forward and make a grab at the two of you. You see their hands inch their way closer to you, but you cannot physically feel them.

"TAYLOR!" Diego shrieks.

You whip your head around in concern as you notice a blue hand pulling at Diego's arm, and another on the back of his shirt. Immediately, you reach out to him. Fortunately, it seems as if Diego is also close to being sealed in a bubble like you, but now he's being pulled out by force. You try to do everything in your power to keep him by your side. You can not lose him like this.

"I've got…you…Diego…" you utter incoherently. "Just…don't…let…go…"

You grip on his hand is as strong as you can possibly make it, and you look up at Diego, into his eyes, and repeat your instructions. He looks back at you with a sad expression on his face, and you can feel your eyes tearing up; Diego's grip is weak. It's not going to hold for long.

"Diego…" You sob, because you're beginning to lose him, your own grip becoming weaker and weaker.

"Taylor…" Diego saying your name is all it takes for him to let go, but you're quick to make a grab for his leg as you pull him down. Needless to say, the angle make it harder to keep a firm grip on him, but you've got to try.

"Please…Diego…help me…I can't…I can't lose you…"

Diego's leg doesn't hold out long.

"Taylor…goodbye…"

Once he's out of your grasp, he vanishes, and the tears begin to flow. Everything around you loses its white glow as you find yourself back on the rooftop gardens of The Celestial.

There's not even a single Watcher in sight, but of course, that also means…there's no sight of Diego. Everyone else, though, is standing around your seated body, exchanging looks of bewilderment and confusion.

"That light…" Michelle begins, "It's gone."

"So are the Watchers," Sean adds, "We must've made it through the portal."

"Wait a minute, bud…" Craig hushes him, and everyone, before bending down to face you directly. He gives you a sad look; one that perhaps already knows the answer it seeks. "Taylor…where's Diego?"

The mention of his name sends you in a sobbing frenzy, and the jock consoles you by enveloping you in a warm bear hug.

"Diego…they took him…pulled him away…" you can barely even understand what comes out of your own mouth as you mumble everything into Craig's jersey, but everyone else seems to get what you're saying. "I tried to save…him…but…"

Nobody says anything. You keep your head down, but you can feel everyone's eyes gazing down at you in pity.

"We have to go back!" Aleister speaks up. "We have to get Diego! We can't just leave him behind."

Jake looks down and picks up the portal gun. You follow his arm and notice the smoke emitting from it. He gulps solemnly.

"I don't think we can, Malfoy." The pilot says. "This thing's toasted."

"It must have malfunctioned when sent though the portal." Michelle evaluates.

She bends down and joins Craig and consoling you. And soon everyone is piling on top of them to offer you a large group hug in support for you.

While Diego is no longer with you, you feel safe with these people, as you let yourself cry as hard as you want to over your loss.

Diego…

There he is.

It had taken a hefty amount of time spent insisting to the others that they would find him before any of them would let you go out and explore the island to find Diego. You had assumed that Diego would still be alive – with what you all being around six months forward and all – and that he'd simply be held captive, but the others thought you were delusional, Raj feeding you somniferous he'd suspiciously found in the kitchen to get you to sleep. But now, you're practically beaming with joy inside at how you were absolutely goddamn right, and now everyone else (bar Quinn and Michelle, due to the former feeling faint) is crouched around you.

You remember how you felt as soon as you saw Diego for the first time earlier in the day, being escorted by the same Watcher you and he had encountered on that night where everything changed. You remember how you teared up a little on the inside, wishing to touch him again, only for the two of you to be far apart. Hell, he couldn't even see you from where he was stationed, and perhaps that was for the better, for all of you had managed to sneak into the Watchers' territory and by God you were not leaving until Diego was in your arms.

You all see a cluster of Watchers gathered around a bonfire, as the shaman you spotted earlier begins to chant something in their indigenous language. It must have been to bring forth Diego, as you see him being escorted by two Watchers. A pained look dominates Diego's face as he stands next to the shaman.

"There he is!" Craig exclaims, before he is elbowed in the ribcage by Estela.

"Shh!" Zahra hisses, and Craig immediately falls silent, much to your satisfaction.

From where you all are perched on the ground, you have a decent view of the seemingly ceremonious display before you. The shaman approaches Diego, and says something to him, to which he is met with a swipe of the hand.

"I'm not some sniffer dog that you can use to confiscate people's smokeables!" he says, exasperated, and you're taken aback by the fact that he understands the Watchers let alone respond to them in English. It's clear that they understand him, too, as he's met with stares on confusion. "Umm…perhaps that wasn't the best analogy, but you get the point! Couldn't we, like, try something else, at the very least?"

We?

Diego was with the Watchers, now? Surely not. But…maybe he's just saying that in a way that reflects him being being captive. Perhaps the Watchers are trying to use him to find the rest of you. No doubt they want to find all of you, considering how hell-bent they were on infiltrating The Celestial.

Then, in your head, you hear the Shaman's words echo, and you adjust yourself to see that Watcher approaching the two.

"Yes, but of course, you cannot rush destiny." the tall shaman says in response to…whatever it was the shaman was saying. "The idol will choose the right time to reveal itself. Is that not what you preached to us?"

The shaman seems to click his tongue before responding, "Oho! So I do, boy! Such wise words." He backs away from Diego, "So be it."

Everyone around the bonfire begins to disband, and you pay close attention to the tall Watcher that seems to dictate Diego's movements, taking him inside an overgrown ruined temple.

Then, Furball – a strange, ice-powered fox you've encountered on the island that's somewhat attached to you – makes his way over to a thicket of trees before turning back to look at you, as if to gesture that this way is where you should go.

You turn to the others. "I think Furball wants me to head over there?"

Jake nods in agreement, "You could probably follow them without even being spotted."

"That is correct." IRIS agrees. "In his current attire, Taylor has but only a 4.2% chance of being seen."

"Awesome." You utter as you follow Furball, "Guys, all of you suggest who distracts the rest of the Watchers – I could use some backup. I'll go ahead and find my way inside."

"I'll do it." Sean volunteers, and you give him a respected nod, but Jake turns to him in concern.

"No, Q.B., sit your ass down." The pilot orders, as he gets up. "I'll do it."

"Jake…" Sean raises himself from his kneeling position, showing all of you the radical height difference between the two young men. He places his hands on Jake's shoulders and rubs them gently. "I'll be okay. I promise."

Jake gives him a worried, pained look, but sighs. "Damn, Captain. Ya just gotta make me feel small, ain't ya?" He tugs on Sean's shirt, levelling the younger man's ear with his face. "Ya better make it back."

"I will." And with that, Sean runs off, and you find yourself heading off into the thicket yourself, taking a more discreet path to the ruins.

Inside the ruins, moonlight makes its way inside the structure through various cracks in the walls, revealing the true interior of a temple still in its prime. You lurk behind a corner once you see Diego and the tall Watcher situated in the center of the structure by an altar. Jake and Estela make their own way in soon enough at the opposite entrance, but you silently gesture to them that Diego is here and that they should hide, to which they comply.

Focusing your attention back on the two in the center, it dawns on you that the Watcher with Diego is the only one within the proximity of the temple, and it appears he is of no threat to your friend; instead, he offers Diego a look of pity.

"I am sorry for the way they were treating you." The Watcher speaks up, looking nervous, and you're taken aback by how he is able to speak English, and coherently so, at that.

"Why are these idols so important anyway?" Diego asks, and you feel yourself leaning in precariously; to hear his voice again means everything, and it pains you to be within walking distance but at the same time so far away from him.

"Uqzhaal believes they will bring about Raan'losti, a time of great chains." The Watcher explains.

Then, much to your surprise, Diego giggles, "No, no, I think…I think you mean 'change'."

The Watcher gives him a quizzical look, before saying, "Yes. That is what I said. Chains."

Diego huffs lightly, and you recognize the playful demeanor, and something inside you twists a little. "No, it's-"

"Chayyyyy-ennnn-juhhhh" the Watcher enunciates, painfully and slowly. He gives Diego a look seeking approval. "Is that correct?"

He's met with a shrug. "Close enough."

Diego chuckles at the Watcher, who also begins laughing lightly. Diego's hair, now longer due to months of it lacking the care it needs, falls in front of his eyes, and he struggles to keep it back.

"Ugh…" he moans. "Wish you guys knew what a razor was…or, like, could even give me a simple haircut. This look really only works on Milo Ventimiglia."

The Watcher moves even closer towards Diego – as if they weren't close enough already – raising his hands as if to offer assistance. "Here. I will help."

Your stomach flips a little as you witness the tall Watcher giving Diego a neatly executed braid near the crown of his head. The act is not sexual by all means, but the intimacy of the moment is so blatantly obvious and it makes your blood boil. This Watcher was clearing courting Diego, and it almost urges you to step forward and make your presence known, but that Watcher is probably capable of killing you single-handedly, so you resist the temptation.

"Oh, nice!" Diego exclaims once the Watcher's hands inch away from his hair, signaling to him that he was done. "Thanks!"

He turns around too face the Watcher, who lowers his hands on Diego's shoulders.

"Of course."

They just stand there for a few seconds, and you're pretty sure your jaw is hitting the floor and Jake's just staring at you from his hiding place across the temple like you've just died. Which…wouldn't be too far off from what you felt, quite frankly.

"So, uh," Diego speaks up, getting the Watcher's attention, "Should we keep looking?"

The Watcher nods, "Oh, uh, yes."

Diego and the Watcher begin to explore the area, and you try your best to hide even more discreetly. The former then freezes once he casts a look over toward a wall, and you too notice something suspiciously in the wall. Diego saunters over to it and reaches up to pull it out, and when he does, he pulls out an idol of gleaming amber. It's seemingly intricate in detail, but from where you are you cannot make out what it is.

The Watcher looks over at Diego. "You…you found it!"

Diego flashes a cocky smile, "Well, would ya look at that? I guess I did."

Estela pssts at you, indicating that you should make a move now before everyone else begins to pile in. You nod, as she reveals a spear and hurls it In the Watcher's direction. The wooden shaft at the end of the spear collides immediately with his head, and it sends him to the ground. Diego crouches down and places a hand around the Watcher's own.

"Varyyn!" he exclaims in shock. Must be the Watcher's name.

"Diego!" You make your presence known to him and approach him. "Are you alright?"

"…Taylor?"

Diego utters nothing else, and at once his hand leaves Varyyn's proximity as he gets up and practically rushes into you with open arms, enveloping you in a big hug that has you crying tears of joy at the touch.

"Oh, I knew it! I knew you'd come for me!" he begins to cry too, and you can feel a damp spot on your shirt starting to form, but you don't care. You move your arm across Diego's back as he continues, "I knew you'd…you'd never forget me…"

"Of course I couldn't…" you say, embracing him tighter. "You know I love you, Diego. More than anything.

"Taylor…" Diego starts but doesn't finish. Instead, he takes notice of the other two in the temple. "Oh my god, Estela, Jake…but where's everyone else?"

"Keeping lookout or distracting the Watchers," Estela informed him, and he's beaming at the news.

"Everyone's okay!"

"Diego, I am so sorry we couldn't get here sooner…" you apologize, feeling like it's the least you can offer him. Aside from of course another tight hug. But then it hits you, and you feel inclined to ask. "So…umm…are you and that Watcher…a thing?"

Diego stammers at you, taken aback by the question, and your stomach flips again. "Him…and m-me…?" he chuckles sheepishly, "Well, eh, heh, I mean, uh, he's easy on the eyes, but…"

He didn't say no. Not outright, at least.

"…have you spent the last six months reading Aladdin and Genie fanfiction? Ooh, have you been watching more Disney movies as well, because you better not go any further if you have till I'm there with you!"

That…sounds promising. To you, at least. It suggests that Diego clearly does remember the night you two watched The Little Mermaid and let things get wild soon after it was over. Maybe…just maybe…he and the Watcher – Varyyn – weren't truly a thing after all.

Very faintly, you catch the sound of a whistled melody echoing across the canyon, and you and Estela both look at each other, remembering that that was Aleister's signal should there be danger present.

"The signal!" Estela cries, as she pulls Diego and the idol towards her and runs out with them in tow. "We've got to hurry!"

You follow suit, and Diego looks back at Varyyn lying there on the ground. He looks pained to be parted from him, and it's eating away at you. Regardless, you, Estela, Jake and Diego rush out of the temple the same way you came in, as it seemed that the Watchers kept pouring in from the entrance that the other two had entered from.

When you're out of the ruins, you find yourselves surrounded by dozens of Watchers, and soon enough the Watchers from the inside accompany their allies. You hold on to Diego's hand tightly, and the Watchers reveal the others they managed to get a hold of.

The shaman hobbles over to Diego and takes the idol, beaming. "Canis has brought us the idol…and something even greater!"

You spot Varyyn giving Diego a firm smile indicating feelings of pride, and your friend's blushing slightly at the attention.

You mentally tell him to fuck off, because you can do that apparently, but he doesn't seem to get what you mean. Figures.

You keep telling yourself that Diego will fall back into your arms once you begin spending more time with him, but that never happens.

The Vaanti – which is apparently what the Watchers are actually called – throw some coronation festival in Varyyn's name given the death of his mother, Ximeadra, who sacrificed her life to Cetus in an attempt to reason with him and create a diversion so that you could defeat him. Alas, it was to no avail, and you are only glad you helped stopped Cetus in her honor.

While on the scavenger hunt with Zahra and Aleister – even finding another idol, which wasn't one of the things on Uzqhaal's list – you spot Diego and Varyyn taking a break from the festivities, being playful with one another in an innocent game of tag. You shush the other two as you spy on your best friend getting all cozy with this…thing. It was never clear as to what species the Vaanti were, but that was the least of your worries, strangely enough in this context.

The two collapse on the sand nearby, and amongst the deep breaths you can hear emitting from their chests, you hear them make small talk about how Diego would keep Varyyn out of trouble for not studying, They're laughing again, and then they inch closer to each other, and only then do you decide to step away from your hiding spot.

"Taylor is a very good friend to you." Varyyn says aloud suddenly, and you freeze, because you have barely even left from where you hid in the first place. You can't even remember what you were thinking about when you were hiding. Maybe he picked up on something?

Hopefully, he can pick up on the meaning of 'piss off' if I think about It enough.

If he heard that, then he doesn't comment on it.

"Taylor?" Diego asks curiously, and you can't blame him. "What makes you say-?"

They both turn around to see you standing haphazardly in a bush as if you're contemplating whether to step out or not. You realize you're the only one here, with Aleister and Zahra probably having left to find the others soon after they realized you weren't gonna go back any time soon.

"Oh. Taylor…hi!" Diego blushes a little bit, and you know it's not because of your history with him, but rather the fact that you caught him here.

"Yeah, um, hey." You greet back, your speech rushed with impatience and sheepishness. "Had some news, and I was gonna tell the others. So…let's go over to the ceremony and find them."

Diego nods and makes his way through the rainforest. Varyyn proceeds to do the same but you tug on his arm lightly.

I'm onto you.

He just looks at you confused and shrugs you off, following Diego's footsteps back to the others.

Blue bastard.

He didn't hear that.

You're camping outside of Rourke's fortress for the night, and it's likely to be your last night on La Huerta if you all succeed in devising a plan to infiltrate the madman's lair. You glance at all the friends you've made on this trip, and all the hell you've been put through to even get here of all places. Despite being tended to by Michelle, Sean's still freezing from being submerged in ice water despite you having rescued the fastest between him, Aleister and Zahra. Jake's arms are wrapped around the taller, colder (in a literal physical sense) man providing him with as much warmth as possible. It's adorable, but you force yourself to look away because it only makes you think of him.

You find Diego isolated, sitting on a log that overlooks a gorgeous ocean, and you contemplate going up to him and talking to him, but you already know what it is he's sad about: Varyyn. The Vaanti isn't able to come with you due to him being an inhabitant of this island. Furthermore, as a non-human, it would be safe to say that Varyyn's presence in their world would practically be suicide. Besides, he has his own duties as Elyyshar now; he can't just leave his people because of what he thinks is love.

You turn away from Diego, but your heart won't allow it. As if robotically, you turn back around, gazing upon the young man with his head hanging low, clearly emotionally distraught. You feel like crying yourself, too; you know that Diego was never one to be socially confident, only having you as a friend. And here he was, isolated from everybody else, because he ultimately couldn't integrate himself into the group.

You decide you want to cheer him up, but it seems that Varyyn beats you to the punch; he comes out of nowhere – although you're only just acknowledging the tent set up close by which raises a whole lot of questions in itself – and sits besides Diego. You won't admit to eavesdropping, but that's what you do in regards to their exchange nonetheless. The elyyshar offers Diego his shoulder to cry on, although the lack of sniffles from the latter imply that he's since stopped crying, and just appreciating the moment.

It burns you, to watch this, but you can't stop yourself. Diego's happy. But, this won't last. Once you all go home, then they won't be able to date, or be a normal couple…if they even were a normal couple anyway. Of course, it's been bugging you the whole fucking time that this is essentially Stockholm Syndrome; that exact Vaanti has crashed into the room you and Diego were in – after a evening of physical intimacy, no less – and threatened both of you. Hell, Diego managed to cut him with a lamp! How could love emerge from that kind of encounter? How?!

You turn away. You're not doing yourself any favors watching Diego being flirtatious with another man. You couldn't do anything to stop it, either. Not unless you wanted to jeopardize your friendship with Diego. You honestly couldn't give a shit about Varyyn's reaction, even if he's an otherwise decent individual, but…Diego…you just couldn't risk it…risk losing him for good.

With a single tear rolling down your cheek, you silently make your way back to your tent, intent on sleeping for the adventure ahead.

This isn't the ending you had in mind.

Hell, you don't think anyone would have anticipated this ending if asked about it all those months…days…weeks…or, whatever-the-fuck, ago.

You're in the central chamber of the Vaanti village, seated between Quinn and Kele – who the hell was he again? You couldn't quite recall – as you await for the men of the hour to enter and make their way to the front, where there respective partners-to-be were waiting. Jake looked stunning in his tux from the New Year's do you all had thrown that time you came across a winter resort on the island. Not many happy memories from that party, frankly; as soon as the New Year was upon the island, Diego had practically leapt into Varyyn's face, attacking him with a surprise kiss that Varyyn eventually got into and even returned the favour. All the while you had sat beside your best friend, the colour from your skin paling as you looked on hungrily at Diego's occupied lips, yearning for them to be yours.

But, if anything wonderful came out of that party, it was that it was also the first time in which Jake and Sean made out in front of everyone, which caused them to cheer even louder. Craig and Raj, in particular, had screamed the loudest, although they had been rather drunk by the time midnight rolled around.

So when it finally happened but only a few hours ago that Jake got on one knee before Sean (making himself look way shorter than the quarterback than usual), both men had reduced themselves to tears, Sean also getting down on one knee to propose as well, but neither one of them getting the opportunity to through all the tears of joy between them. It was so endearing that everyone – even Zahra and Estela – started crying at the scene as well. Estela had been quick to utter "about damn time" in Jake's ear while Sean had received the biggest, longest bro-hug from Craig that you've ever seen him give.

After that, though, Varyyn had made his way over to Diego on the other side of the group watching the sight before them, and got down on one knee. Having been right next to Diego at the time, you noticed how flustered he had been as Varyyn delivered an admittedly heart-warming speech declaring the love he's had for the man over the seemingly long period of time they've spent together, and Diego said yes before he could even finish.

To everyone else, it was the perfect time to propose, romance being in the air in lieu of the Handfasting ceremonies taking place, but to you, it was the cherry on top of a very bitter cake. To see Diego pounce into another man's arms despite everything that had gone on between the two of you. It's hell, you think to yourself, being sat here waiting to see Varyyn handfast with Diego. To watch your best friend officially be betrothed to someone that isn't you.

The doors at the back of the chamber open, and Diego enters with his arms interlocked with Sean's. It had been agreed between the four of them that the two making an entrance could effectively walk each other down the aisle (or at least, the best recreation of one the Vaanti could conceive on such short notice and general lack of knowledge of such a concept). Diego didn't particularly talk to Sean much, but you're aware of how kind, caring and compassionate Sean is to everyone he meets, and to see him walking your best friend down the aisle makes you feel relaxed. Of course, you do wish it could have been you, and you're surprised Diego hadn't queried it with you, but of course this way was more practical.

Besides…before, you had always imagined that you'd be the one waiting for Diego to make an entrance, ready to wed him and spend an eternity together.

Similar to Jake, Sean is wearing his outfit from the New Year's party, also resurfaced by coincidence. It does look a little too tight, as it had done on New Year's as well, due to the fact that it was only close to his dimensions, not exact. But if it could last a ferocious make-out session with Jake when the clock struck twelve, then there was no doubt that it would survive a handfasting ceremony.

Diego, though…looks absolutely breath-taking. As soon as he stepped into the chamber, everyone fell silent as they gazed upon his attire. For the occasion, Varyyn had insisted that Diego wore only the best garments the Vaanti had to offer. As it was a request from the elyyshar himself, the Vaanti people happily complied as they provided him with an outfit donned by none other than Varyyn's father. You thought that perhaps the sentient, while well-intentioned, didn't quite have the right connotations to it. Similarly, the Vaanti people has argued that the elyyshar was better suited to don the attire that once belonged to his own father, but Varyyn apparently insisted he wore his regal attire for the ceremony, and nobody had objected after that.

The ceremony starts, but you're not paying attention to any of it. You sit there, in silence, trying as hard as you can to focus your attention on Sean and Jake's handfasting, because you know as soon as you even dare to look in Diego's direction, you're going to lose it in front of everybody. Quinn occasionally casts you a look over her shoulder every now and then and it doesn't help matters either. Every time she does, you make sure to have a smile plastered on your face to dismiss her. Well, it's a half-sincere smile, at least; while you're happy for Jake and Sean alike for getting married to one another, you're not going to simply disregard the discomfort and jealousy you feel when it comes to Diego's own wedding.

When it's over, everyone gets up and congratulates the men of the hour. You saunter behind as many people as possible, making your way to Sean and Jake so that you can give them a hearty congratulation. They both beam brightly at you before turning their attention to everyone else, and soon enough Diego and Varyyn integrate themselves into the cluster, which causes your friends to spread themselves out between the two couples. You stand where you are and hold your ground, your own insecurities and emotional fragilities preventing you from taking a step closer to Diego's proximity.

But then he finally catches your eye.

He looks at you, his smile perhaps the brightest and more sincere you've ever seen it in your entire life, and it's not because of you. It's because of another man – creature…thing…. – that entered Diego's life through kidnapping him and making him put up with so much crap over six months…a part of you wishes you had been the one to have been taken by the Vaanti that night, but thinking about it like that now is surely selfish, is it not? All you know is, you can't stay here a moment longer. Not if you have to live with the constant reminder that the only man you've ever loved got betrothed to the one who took him away from you mere hours after you two had professed your love for one another.

You meet Diego's gaze for a few seconds, but then look away because, as you predicted, you start crying, as if him just smiling at you opened the wound. You turn and head for the exit of the chamber, before the tears start flowing, and you don't even stop to see if anyone rushes after you.

You pause for breath on the bridge, looking down at the ocean below you. You clench your fists in agony around the roped rails of the bridge. You heart feels as if it is practically going to burst. You begin to breath in deeply, and breath it out, but it doesn't help, so the tears freely pour from your face.

Footsteps seemed to have followed you out here. You turn, and Diego stands at the end of the bridge. His eyes are wide with concern, and he even looks a little bit frightened for you. He inches closer and closer until he's roughly eye level with you. You want to turn away, but his eyes attract you in such a way that makes you feel contractually obligated to reciprocate.

You allow his fingers to delicately wipe away the floods of tears as he utters, "Are you okay?" in a soft, hushed tone.

You take a while to respond, mostly due to the fact that you were pondering whether it was a good thing to provide him with an answer. Not only that, but his touch takes you aback. Before, you wanted nothing more than for him to touch you, but now…that feeling's dissipated.

"I thought you loved me." You feel the venom in your words as they fall out of your mouth, and it must hit Diego hard, for he lifts his arms and meets your gaze with a confused stare.

He softens. "I did."

"Then what changed?"

He doesn't reply. Every subsequent second of silence begins to eat you up, and you want to run for it, and not look back.

Diego breaks the silence.

"Taylor…"

His arms expand as he inches his way toward you, trying to envelope you into a hug, but it won't help. It doesn't change the fact that he did love you and then fell into the arms of his captor. What's more is that he's conscientiously aware of his actions, even if he won't admit it out loud. No-one denies the fact that Diego was a captive, and that the love is perhaps a little too strange, even by La Huerta standards, but they're able to brush it off. But that's the thing: you can't.

They didn't – don't – know Diego like you do. To them, he just found love, and they're happy for him for that reason. But to you, there's so much more to that. Standing right before you was the man who had confessed his love to you, only to not act upon it, and it makes your heart ache so.

You slide backward, distancing yourself from the empty hug, and turn, making a run for it. Where your feet take you, it doesn't matter. Just as long as you're far away from Diego.

He doesn't follow.

So you only run further.


End file.
